On June 9, 2023, Noah Kahan released the extended version of his third studio album, “Stick Season.” The extended album, entitled “Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever),” features new songs, such as “Dial Drunk,” “Call Your Mom,” “No Complaints,” “The View Between Villages (Extended),” and more. Kahan’s album covers everything. He covers love and loss, like many artist do, but what makes this album so special is the unique themes he also includes. He brilliantly expresses growing up and leaving your home town to coming back with the emotions that follow. He even talks about divorce and death. The originality and vulnerability fans loved from the original album are evermore present in its extended counterpart.
From the most popular song, “Stick Season,” to the most niche, “Halloween,” Kahan displays impressive symbolism and follows each chord on his guitar with a stroke of lyrical genius. Every song is uniquely packed with symbolism and metaphors that dive into four categories: love, loss, hometown struggles, and mental illness.
Love and loss are both uniquely discussed by Kahan in songs like “Stick Season,” “All My Love,” “Everywhere, Everything,” “Strawberry Wine,” and so many more. Each of these songs show exactly what it’s like to fall in and out of love, in addition to the rush of emotions that come with both. While they all are distinctly beautiful, one in particular zones in on a less represented situation. “All My Love” was written by Kahan with the divorce of his parents in mind. At each concert/festival where he plays it, Kahan gives fans an update on his parents. The running joke among fans is that they get back together every other show. He says things like “My parents got divorced during Covid! Yeah!” or “‘They got back together!” after his, arguably, most iconic line, “My folks still talk, but they speak in these two word sentences,” (from “All My Love”). The sentiment behind the joke is truly a stroke of genius.
When it comes to leaving home and mental struggles, Kahan is an expert. Songs like “The View Between Villages,” “Growing Sideways,” “Homesick,” and more are like no other. “The View Between Villages” and “Homesick” perfectly display the raw emotions that come with returning to a small hometown, which most of us will understand after graduation. With lines like “Feel the rush of my blood, I’m 17 again” or “It’s all washing over me, I’m angry again,” Kahan cuts into your soul—or reads into it—perfectly capturing the very essence of coming back to a home that is no longer yours. Kahan’s song “Growing Sideways” expresses, in complete veracity, the experiences that go along with mental illness. Whether it’s watching others get healthy, falling into/out of faith, or even impulsive shopping, Kahan uses sarcasm and truth disguised as jokes to perfectly encapsulate the experience.
Whether you’ve been in love, experienced loss, left home, struggled, or anything in between, Kahan has a song for you. Every joke and self-deprecating lyric is genius, disguising the truth and poetry in his lyrics. The upbeat melodies and strum of Kahan’s guitar in contrast to the emotion behind his lyrics creates music you can feel in your bones. This album’s bold themes and the pure mastermind behind them create a truly amazing and unique album that anyone can enjoy.
